In addition to X Rank, when Version 3.0 goes live this evening, this new update adds more than 100 pieces of gear - some new, some returning from the original Splatoon game - as well as new songs from Chirpy Chips, a popular in-game chiptune-style band featured in the first game. (Photo: Business Wire)

In addition to X Rank, when Version 3.0 goes live this evening, this new update adds more than 100 pieces of gear - some new, some returning from the original Splatoon game - as well as new songs from Chirpy Chips, a popular in-game chiptune-style band featured in the first game. (Photo: Business Wire)

REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nintendo’s dropping some fresh (and free!) new content for Splatoon
2 on Nintendo
Switch tonight! After downloading a major new update (Version 3.0)
to the Splatoon 2 game at 6 p.m. PT, players will have access to
a huge amount of new content. This includes the addition of more than
100 pieces of new and returning gear, new songs, the introduction of a
challenging new X Rank for the top-performing players in Ranked Battle,
weapon balance adjustments and the return of Callie of the famous Squid
Sisters.

“As promised when the game was first announced, we are determined to
provide players with new experiences and content in Splatoon 2,”
said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales
and Marketing. “Through these regular updates, we are ensuring that both
players old and new will log on to fun new experiences.”

X Rank is an extremely challenging Ranked Battle experience targeting
the best-of-the-best players. Players who are S+10 in the current Splatoon
2 ranking system will automatically be registered as X Rank after
downloading the update. Players who are X Rank will battle for an X
Power level. Once a month, 500 players with the highest X Power level
for each of the four different Ranked Battle modes will be announced
within SplatNet
2, a service of the Nintendo Switch Online app for mobile devices.

X Power levels will be reset every month. During this reset, players
whose X Power level ends up lower than a set threshold will rank down to
S+9. This new system encourages players of all ranks to enjoy improving
their play and maintaining their skills, as opposed to simply focusing
on ranking up.

The first X Power reset is currently scheduled for May 31, and any
future resets will take place on the final day of that month. As part of
these periodic resets, the rotation of eight selected stages in Ranked
Battle (with two stages rotating every two hours), the addition of new
weapons and the introduction of new stages will also occur. In fact,
tonight will also see the return of the popular stage Camp Triggerfish,
along with four additional weapons.

In addition to X Rank, when Version 3.0 goes live this evening, this new
update adds more than 100 pieces of gear – some new, some returning from
the original Splatoon game – as well as new songs from Chirpy
Chips, a popular in-game chiptune-style band featured in the first game.
The update will also include some weapon balance adjustments, bug fixes
and other changes.

Fans of the Squid Sisters will need to sit down, as the software update
also marks the long-awaited return of Callie. Once players meet a
certain condition after downloading the update, Callie will appear in
Tentakeel Outpost in Octo Canyon. As exciting as it is to see the Squid
Sisters reunited, Callie will also offer recent multiplayer stats about
the player’s character.

About Nintendo: The worldwide pioneer in the creation of
interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan,
manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Nintendo Switch™
system and the Nintendo 3DS™ family of portable systems.
Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System™,
Nintendo has sold more than 4.5 billion video games and more than 710
million hardware units globally, including Nintendo Switch and the
Nintendo 3DS family of systems, as well as the Game Boy™,
Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS™ family of systems, Super NES™,
Nintendo 64™, Nintendo GameCube™, Wii™
and Wii U™ systems. It has also created industry icons that
have become well-known, household names, such as Mario, Donkey Kong,
Metroid, Zelda and Pokémon. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of
America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for
Nintendo’s operations in the Americas. For more information about
Nintendo, please visit the company’s website at https://www.nintendo.com/.

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